2. Name
From 1935 to October 1, 2008, the
company name was "Matsushita
Electric Industrial Co., Ltd." On
January 10, 2008, the company
announced that it would change its
name to "Panasonic Corporation", in
effect on October 1, 2008, to conform
with its global brand name
"Panasonic". The name change was
approved at a shareholders' meeting
on June 26, 2008 after consultation
with the Matsushita family.
3. History
20th Century
Panasonic was founded in 1918 by Kōnosuke Matsushita as a vendor of duplex lamp sockets.[7] In 1927, it began producing bicycle lamps, the first product which it marketed
the brand name National.
During World War II the company operated factories in Japan and other parts of Asia which produced electrical components and appliances such as light
irons, wireless equipment and its first vacuum tubes.
After the war, Panasonic regrouped as a Keiretsu and began to supply the post-war boom in Japan with radios and appliances, as well as bicycles. Matsushita's brother-in-
law, Toshio Iue, founded Sanyo as a subcontractor for components after World War II. Sanyo grew to become a competitor to Panasonic, but was later acquired by Panasonic
December 2009.
In 1961, Konosuke Matsushita traveled to the United States and met with American dealers. The company began producing television sets for the U.S. market under
the Panasonic brand name, and expanded the use of the brand to Europe in 1979.
The company used the National brand outside of North America from the 1950s to the 1970s (the trademark could not be used in the United States because it was already in
by the National Radio Company in a closely related product area). It sold televisions, VHS VCRs, high fidelity stereo receivers, multi-band shortwave radios and marine radio
direction finders, often exported to North America under various U.S. brand names, such as Technics, Emerson, Curtis Mathes and of course Panasonic. The company also
developed a line of home appliances such as rice cookers for the Japanese and Asian markets. Rapid growth resulted in the company opening manufacturing plants around the
world.
The company debuted a hi-fidelity audio speaker in Japan in 1965 with the brand Technics. This line of high quality stereo components became worldwide favorites, the most
famous products being its turntables, such as the SL-1200 record player, known for its high performance, precision and durability. Throughout the 1970s and early 1980s,
Panasonic continued to produce high-quality specialized electronics for niche markets such as shortwave radios, and developed its successful line of stereo receivers, CD
and other components.
In 1973, Matsushita formed a joint venture with Anam Group, Anam National.
In 1983, Matsushita launched the Panasonic Senior Partner, the first fully IBM PC compatible Japanese-made computer.
In November 1990, Matsushita agreed to acquire the American media company MCA Inc. for US$6.59 billion.Matsushita subsequently sold 80% of MCA to Seagram
US$7 billion in April 1995.
In 1998, Matsushita sold Anam National to Anam Electronics.
4. Current operations
As of March 31, 2012, Panasonic employed about 330,000 staff and had
around 580 subsidiary companies. Panasonic had total revenues
of ¥7,846,216 million in 2012, of which 53 percent were generated in
Japan, 25 percent in Asia (excluding Japan), 12 percent in the Americas
and 10 percent in Europe.
Panasonic's operations are organised into three broad "business fields"
- Consumer, Solutions and Components & Devices - and nine "domain
companies" - AVC Networks (which generated 17% of Panasonic's total
2012 revenues), Eco Solutions (15% of revenues), Appliances (15% of
revenues), Industrial Devices (14% of revenues), Systems and
Communications (8% of revenues), Automotive Systems (7% of
revenues), Energy (6% of revenues), Healthcare and Manufacturing
Solutions.
Panasonic invested a total of ¥520,216 million in research and
development in 2012, equivalent to 6.6 percent of its revenues in that
year. As of March 31, 2012, Panasonic held a total of 140,146 patents
worldwide.
In July 2016, it was reported that Panasonic is now looking at making
acquisitions in the artificial intelligence (AI) and machine learning space.
According to a source, the company has put aside $10 million for use in
either an acquisition or joint venture.
